CHENNAI: Saddled with multiple loans and lured by the promise of hefty life insurance sum of around Rs 4.5 crore, two sons meticulously planned the cold-blooded murder of their father using a venomous snake and tried to pass it off as an accidental death in Tiruvallur in October. But as carefully planned as their plot was, it all unravelled after an insurance firm raised doubts, which led to a detailed probe by a special team that revealed the crime.
The police team arrested the two sons of the deceased and four others who helped them allegedly plot and execute the murder.
The case dates back to October 22, when EP Ganesan, a 56-year-old lab assistant at a Government Girls Higher Secondary School in Pothaturpettai, was reported to have died from a snake bite at his home in Pothaturpettai. A case was registered based on the complaint filed by his son, G Mohanraj (29).
What changed the course of the investigation was the serious suspicions raised by an insurance company. The firm filed a complaint with the Inspector General of Police (North Zone) Asra Garg, raising doubts about the legitimacy of the claims and the suspicious conduct of the two sons of the deceased man. Following this, IG Garg on December 6 ordered the constitution of an eight-member SIT led by Deputy Superintendent of Police, C Jaishree.
During their probe, the officials found that the family was under severe financial strain due to multiple loans. On the other hand, they had availed of several high-value insurance policies. Another aspect that raised a red flag was the mismatch between their income and liabilities.
Through rigorous scientific, technical, and field-level investigation, the SIT established that Ganesan’s sons, Mohanraj and Hariharan (27), hatched a criminal conspiracy to murder their father for the insurance money. To execute the plan, they allegedly enlisted four others, identified as Balaji (28), Prasanth (35), Dinakaran (43), and Naveenkumar (28).
According to officials, the conspirators made an initial attempt about a week before the murder. They arranged a cobra through Dinakaran to bite Ganesan's leg, but the latter survived. Undeterred, on the early morning of October 22, they procured a krait. Learning from their previous experience, they decided not to leave anything for chance and made the snake bite Ganesan on the neck, which made it fatally lethal.
"To stage the scene, the accused killed the snake inside the house after the bite to fabricate an accidental death scenario and remove evidence," said a senior police officer. The probe further identified an "undue and unexplained delay" in shifting Ganesan to the hospital, which confirmed the SIT’s suspicions about the premeditated nature of the crime.
All six accused – Hariharan, Mohanraj, Balaji, Prashanth, Naveenkumar, and Dinakaran – were arrested and sent in judicial custody.
“This was a well-orchestrated criminal conspiracy driven purely by financial greed. The attempt to pass off a murder as a common accidental death showed a calculated disregard for human life. Our team's meticulous work has ensured the perpetrators are brought to justice," said special team head DSP C Jaishree.